Nutrition studyIt is not what children eat but what they don't eat that causes them to be overweight, according to an Irish nutrition consultant. Commenting on her study of obesity in children and teenagers, nutritionist Nuala Collins said obesity was often caused by eating the wrong types of food, and not always by over-eating as is sometimes perceived.
Ms Collins said children who eat a large amount of high-calorie food, like fast food, sweets and fizzy drinks are predisposed to being overweight. "You would need to run a full marathon to run off a large fast food meal of burger, fries, soft drink and a dessert." Children who drink sugary drinks have a 10 per cent higher calorie intake than those who do not. By contrast, the study, commissioned by the Oat Millers of Ireland, identifies wholegrain foods - bread and cereals - as ideal snack foods for children because they are low in calories but fill them up. It cites poor food choice as a key factor in childhood obesity, along with genetics and lifestyle.
Eating low energy-dense foods such as potatoes and bread, high-fibre breakfast cereals and three servings of dairy products a day can help to prevent obesity, the study says. It also notes babies who are breastfed have less chance of developing childhood obesity.
A recent survey conducted by UK consumer magazine Which? highlighted a range of breakfast cereals that were claiming to be healthy when in fact they contained high levels of sugar, salt and saturated fat.
Out of 100 breakfast cereals examined, only four of them were high in fibre and low in sugar and salt content by UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) standards. Out of all the cereals classified as cereals marketed towards children, Ready-Brek was the only one to get the green light as a high-fibre, low-sugar and low-salt cereal. The FSA states that if a breakfast cereal contains:
6g/100g or more of fibre it is "high" in fibre.
2g/100g or less of sugar it has "a little" sugar.
10g/100g or more of sugar it has "a lot of" sugar.
5g/100g or more of saturated fat it has "a lot of" saturated fat.
In Ireland, it is expected the Broadcasting Commission's proposals for new advertising standards will help target food advertising during children's programming. The Oat Millers report says many Irish children graze on high-energy foods while watching TV. Decline in physical activity among children was one of the key factors leading to obesity highlighted by the report.
Ms Collins welcomed the BCI proposals but said it was important that food agencies take these standards seriously: "Any system for monitoring these standards needs to have teeth. It is important that these standards actually have meaning."
The study cites a survey conducted into Dublin teenagers by Dr Niall Moyna of DCU which found 18 per cent of them were overweight and 5 per cent were obese.
Apart from the "social unpleasantness" experienced by overweight children, Ms Collins said medical problems normally regarded as adult complaints, such as high blood pressure, diabetes and joint problems, were now beginning to emerge in over-weight children.
Ms Collins said a "concerted effort" from Government, schools and parents was necessary to tackle children's diets: "What is being done is very good but clearly we need more. You only need to look around school yards and you see that overweight and obesity are a growing problem."
The report, Obesity in Children and Teenagers - a growing problem, is published on www.oatmillers.ie